Report Navigation

Country Reports

Slovakia’s parliamentary system ensures regular multiparty elections and peaceful transfers of power between rival parties. While civil liberties are generally protected, democratic institutions are hampered by cronyism and political corruption, entrenched discrimination against the Romany minority, and growing political hostility toward potential migrants and refugees who could augment Slovakia’s tiny Muslim population. Such concerns have fueled the rise of right-wing nationalist parties in recent years.

Key Developments in 2016:

The ruling party, Direction–Social Democracy (Smer-SD), lost its outright majority in March parliamentary elections and formed a coalition with two other parties, including the nationalist Slovak People’s Party (SNS). A party led by the neo-Nazi Marián Kotleba entered the parliament with 8 percent of the vote.

New corruption allegations against Interior Minister Robert Kaliňák, involving links to a businessman facing tax fraud charges, sparked months of protests and a failed no-confidence motion against Kaliňák and Prime Minister Robert Fico in September. In a positive step in October, the parliament adopted a law to block shell companies from involvement in the public procurement process.

Throughout the year, Fico and other government officials characterized Muslim migrants as a threat to European security. The parliament voted in November to increase the membership threshold, from 20,000 to 50,000, for religious groups seeking official recognition or state benefits, in what was seen as an effort to prevent future registration of Muslim groups. The president vetoed the measure in December, returning it to the parliament for reconsideration.

Executive Summary:

Slovakia held elections for the 150-seat unicameral parliament in March 2016. The ruling Smer-SD secured 49 seats, losing its parliamentary majority, while the liberal center-right Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) placed second with 21 seats, and the conservative Ordinary People and Independent Personalities (OĽANO–NOVA) took 19. Most-Híd (Bridge), which advocates better cooperation between the country’s ethnic Hungarian minority and ethnic Slovak majority, took 11 seats.

Two far-right parties fared well, apparently benefiting from the government’s warnings that Slovakia risked being overrun by Muslim refugees. The nationalist SNS won 15 seats, while the People’s Party–Our Slovakia (ĽSNS), led by neo-Nazi regional governor Marián Kotleba, took 14 seats. The new parties We Are Family, led by wealthy businessman Boris Kollár, and Sieť (Network), headed by prominent conservative lawyer Radoslav Procházka, ran on anticorruption platforms and captured 11 and 10 seats, respectively.

Negotiations on a new government eventually yielded a four-party coalition composed of Smer-SD, SNS, Sieť, and Most-Híd. Sieť subsequently split and began to lose members, dropping out of the coalition in August.

Although Slovakia assumed the presidency of the European Union (EU) for the first time in July, Prime Minister Fico continued to push back strongly against the EU’s mandatory refugee resettlement quotas, finding common ground with the leaders of neighboring Poland and Hungary. In November, Slovakia presented the European Council with an alternative plan for resettling migrants. Throughout the year, the government used anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric to underscore its stance against perceived threats to Slovakia’s sovereignty, security, and “values.”

In October, the parliament voted to impose new rules on the conduct of deputies during parliamentary sessions, including time limits on speeches and a ban on leaflets and audiovisual presentations. The speaker will be allowed to launch disciplinary proceedings against unruly deputies. President Andrej Kiska initially vetoed the legislation on the grounds that it was aimed at restricting the effective operation of the opposition, but the parliament overrode the veto.

Relations between the government and critical media outlets remained tense. Fico made headlines in November by calling some reporters “dirty, anti-Slovak prostitutes” following reports on possible corruption in state procurements. Journalists in the country continued to face the threat of criminal penalties for defamation and Holocaust denial.

Other corruption allegations dogged current and former public officials in 2016. Marek Gajdoš, head of the long-running “Gorilla file” investigation, stepped down in October, citing “intolerable” pressure by his superiors. He asserted that most of the allegations in the file— a leaked document on state surveillance of allegedly corrupt relationships between politicians and prominent businessmen—have turned out to be accurate, despite authorities’ reluctance to validate the material’s authenticity.

A stalemate between the president and parliament over the appointment of Constitutional Court judges persisted, leaving the 13-member court with three vacant seats.

Political Rights

A1. Is the head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections?A2. Are the national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections?A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair?

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system open to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings?B2. Is there a significant opposition vote and a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections?B3. Are the people’s political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, totalitarian parties, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group?B4. Do cultural, ethnic, religious, or other minority groups have full political rights and electoral opportunities?

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government?C2. Is the government free from pervasive corruption?C3. Is the government accountable to the electorate between elections, and does it operate with openness and transparency?

Civil Liberties

D1. Are there free and independent media and other forms of cultural expression?D2. Are religious institutions and communities free to practice their faith and express themselves in public and private?D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free of extensive political indoctrination?D4. Is there open and free private discussion?

E1. Is there freedom of assembly, demonstration, and open public discussion?E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations?E3. Are there free trade unions and peasant organizations or equivalents, and is there effective collective bargaining? Are there free professional and other private organizations?

F1. Is there an independent judiciary?F2. Does the rule of law prevail in civil and criminal matters? Are police under direct civilian control?F3. Is there protection from political terror, unjustified imprisonment, exile, or torture, whether by groups that support or oppose the system? Is there freedom from war and insurgencies?F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population?

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of travel or choice of residence, employment, or institution of higher education?G2. Do individuals have the right to own property and establish private businesses? Is private business activity unduly influenced by government officials, the security forces, political parties/organizations, or organized crime?G3. Are there personal social freedoms, including gender equality, choice of marriage partners, and size of family?G4. Is there equality of opportunity and the absence of economic exploitation?